Love from London!

Indian-Serbian UK-based pop singer Rika on how her mixed-origin influenced the creation of her debut EP, Doses

The social media dummies that we are, we could spend 30 minutes editing, adding filters, cropping and speeding up a two-minute clip, managing to make it 'Instagram-worthy' only minutes before rage would otherwise compel us to throw our phones to the ground and smash it, Hulk-style. We feel rather silly then for the detailed and elaborate brief we send Rika's team for the creation of this video (available exclusively on the mid-day digital tabloid), which the young pop artiste sends within minutes, edited and beautifully executed. It's a testimony of sorts to her belief of how important social media is, as she makes evident in this interview.

"Today, your social media [feed] is like your CV. It's a reflection of everything you have done, and the personality you have. Eventually, you're selling yourself as a product," says the 20-year-old Londoner, who grew up under the influence of both, Bollywood, and pop music. Her recently released debut EP, Doses, gives us a glimpse into this education. "I grew up with my aunties and uncles, who influenced my Hindi music sensibilities, and was also exposed to Western music. Bollywood taught me that it is alright to be overwhelmed with emotions, and that is something I apply to my songs as well. I've adopted the use of scales too from Bollywood," says Rika, who joined the likes of Taylor Swift and Justin Bieber in being among the teens who were signed on by a popular international music label.

The half-Indian-half-Serbian singer made her debut with the 2017 single, No need. After having been part of a previous edition of BBC Asia's Future Sound, she is now set to join the judges' panel in photo and video-sharing app Triller's hunt for a fresh face from Asia.

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